Be thou my vision the rise of christianity in south korea 1884 to the present

the impact of the religion on the individual, the interaction between the missionaries and the Koreans and how Christianity appealed to the common day South Korean through this cultural

Declaration

I hereby declare that this thesis is my original work and it has been written by me in its entirety I have duly acknowledged all the sources of information which have

been used in the thesis

This thesis has not been submitted for any degree in any

university previously

Lin Bihui Celisa

10th September 2014

 My daughter, Claire, for always putting a smile on my face whenever I

am feeling down and lost amidst the many roles and responsibilities I have to assume

 My supervisor, Dr Lee Seung Joon for guiding me and always

encouraging me whenever I lost confidence in my writing Thank you also for tolerating me when I am tardy with regards to the handing in of drafts I would also like to thank my very first supervisor Prof Thomas DuBois for his guidance and for inspiring me to do a thesis based on religion

 The Korean Christians that I have come to know and befriend with in the course of this research Without them, I would not be able to come up with this piece of work

 My fellow graduate students Wenci, Eun Shil, Cheryl, Mingguang,

Siriphon and the many others in the graduate room who patiently heard

me out whenever I was stuck in the process of writing, giving me

suggestions and just hearing me whine about how tough this journey was

 To all the staff in the History Department who have helped me in one way or another in the course of writing this thesis Thank you for giving

me this opportunity to write this thesis even though it has been a whole four years since I returned to studying

 Finally, I would like to thank God for carrying me through this long but enriching journey where I have been given the opportunity to learn more about my faith and connect with other Christians around the world

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements………ii

Table of Contents……… iv

Summary of Thesis……….v

Introduction………1

Chapter 1: Making Inroads into the Hermit Kingdom: The Transformation of Christianity in South Korea (1884-1953)……….21

Chapter 2: Who is in charge?: The relationship between the Western Missionaries and the Korean Converts………43

Chapter 3: Christianity in the present………64

Conclusion………84

Bibliography……….89

Appendices……… 93

Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock

and the door will be opened to you For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks the door will be opened”

a foreign religion However, looking at the number of converts in South Korea today and the social force that Christianity presents itself to be within the Korean society, missionaries like Horace N Allen, Henry G Appenzellar and Horace G Underwood would certainly marvel at the success of their mission to make disciples of all nations

by bringing the good news of Christ to Korea

According to statistics, about a third of the population in South Korea identify themselves as Christians The largest church in the world, Yoido Full Gospel Church, boasting a one million strong church congregation, is found in South Korea South Korea is also known as the country that sends out the most number of missionaries

to preach the gospel around the world, especially in areas that are hardest to reach out to, such as Afghanistan and Africa Besides, Seoul is known to be “a city of churches”1, a description that is akin to John Winthrop’s description of America as a

“city upon a hill.” “Many Korean Christians do believe that the torch of faith, which

1 Park, Chung –Shin, Protestantism and Politics in Korea, edited by James B Palais, University

of Washington Press, United States of America, 2003, p 3

passed from the Middle East into Europe and then into America, has now, crossed the Pacific Ocean into Korea.”2 Like the Americans before them, the Koreans believe that they were God’s “chosen people”3 and the world should now look at them as an exemplary model of how the Christian faith should be practiced

How did a foreign religion become tied so closely to the South Korean identity? How

do South Koreans as individuals connect with the religion? When and why did South Korea experience such a huge surge in the number of Christian believers? Why did the spread of Christianity succeed in Korea but fail in other Asian countries such as China and Japan? Finally, how is Christianity relevant to the South Koreans who are experiencing rapid modernization after the Korean War? These are questions that I hope to seek the answers to However, before looking into these questions, there is

a need to understand the political and social political circumstances behind the formation of South Korea and also the relationship between nation state, religion and identity in the context of South Korea

Nation, Religion and the Korean Identity

A nation state is a modern construct One that is defined by fixed territorial

boundaries and laws that govern the state However, it is also a construct with a psychological dimension, according to the famous definition by Benedict Anderson –

“imagined communities” One that suggests the need for citizens of a nation to feel

a sense of belonging to this imagined construct and identify with it Therefore, when

we consider the psychological dimension of how a nation comes to be imagined,

“the distinction between the nationalist and religious imagination”4 cannot be assumed to be mutually exclusive This is because, despite the advent of modernity

and the pursuit of “economic and cognitive growth,” these material pursuits alone are not enough to sustain the human imagination The human imagination of one’s self-identity proves to be more complex and cannot be defined as a mere linear vision of progress in the world that they live in presently

According to Talal Asad, “what needs to be emphasized beyond Anderson’s famous thesis is that the complex medieval Christian universe and hierarchy of spaces, is broken down by the modern doctrine of secularism into a duality: a world of self-authenticating things in which we really live as social beings and a religious world that exists only in our imagination.”6 This duality suggests that religion continues to play an important role in a world that is defined as modern and secular despite the contradicting notions it presents by being associated with traditions and the past It also suggests the possibility where time frames marking the past and the present can co-exist with one another in a cohesive manner within the human mind, as we draw inspirations from both the past and the present to make sense of the world that we live in In light of what Talal Asad has discoursed on, I feel that one of the reasons why Christianity has become so immensely popular in South Korea is that people intrinsically feel a need for the Spiritual, that the secular world is unable to fulfil Besides, given the close links that Christianity has with regards to the political developments in South Korea, we also have to take into account how Christianity features in the South Korean’s national identity

Seen in this light, Christianity in South Korea becomes an important starting point for one to explore and understand the South Korean identity This is because

Christianity, and in particular Protestant Christianity, is a foreign religion from the

West that only took root in South Korea in the past hundred years; therefore it can

be seen at once as both modern and of the past Through the lens of this “new” religion, one can gain a clearer understanding of the process by which people move back and forth in time, drawing on past elements and present understandings to better position themselves within present day society Looking at the way

Christianity interacts with the Korean society and how it is practiced by the Koreans,

we can get a better glimpse of how religion is used actively by the Koreans, as an “all purpose social glue”7 that helps them reconcile with the contradictions, changes and ambiguous situations they might face in their everyday lives Finally, it also allows us

to reflect on how the Korean identity comes to be imagined by the South Korean Christians, as we seek to understand how “Koreans today can proudly proclaim themselves to be Christians without feeling that by doing so they are denying their Korean heritage or betraying their Korean ancestors?”8 This identity which an

individual actively identifies with is important because it constitutes one’s

perception of self and also self-worth Thus in my thesis, I will be examining how Christianity has slowly become integrated into the South Korean society, becoming

an integral part of the South Korean identity and as a consequence, becoming so immensely popular in Korea

However, before moving into a review on works in the field, I would first like to clarify my aims and what I hope to achieve through my research The main focus of

my thesis is to find out and understand the reasons behind the appeal of Christianity

in South Korea and how the religion becomes so closely tied to the South Korean identity, especially in the years after the Korean War to the present However, in

7

Charles F Keyes, Helen Hardacer and Laura Kendall, “Contested Visions of Community in East and Southeast Asia”, edited by Charles F Keyes, Helen Hardacer and Laura Kendall in Asian Visions of Authority: Religion and the Modern States of East and Southeast Asia, University of Hawaii Press, Honolulu, 1994, pp 2-3

8

Baker, Don, “Christianity ‘Koreanized”, p 108

order to understand what constitutes the South Korean identity, I have also chosen

to take a more microscopic view of the topic and focus on the individual; the

reasons behind their decisions to convert to Christianity, the struggles they face in becoming Christians and also the process by which they reconcile both identities of being both Korean and Christian at the same time

The time period which I choose to focus on would be from the late 1880s to 1945 This time period is interesting because it is a period a major political upheaval in Korea as seen in the gradual collapse of the long reigning Yi dynasty, the advent of the Japanese as colonial masters over the Koreans and the war which forced both the missionaries and later, the Japanese out of Korea This period also saw great social transformation in Korea as Koreans, both men and women learn to find their footing in a modern society that allows them more opportunities to further their lot

in life is as compared to the class system that used to be entrenched within their society under imperial rule Beyond the individual, Korea also found herself in search

of a new national identity amidst their forced subjugation by the Japanese These narrative breaks in her history will present a challenge to many Koreans in the later years as it is difficult for them Koreans to identify with a linear and singular history that they can look to with pride Therefore, by looking at the transformation of Christianity from the 1880s to the present, we can gain a better view of the process

of indigenization and how Christianity presents itself as a malleable force through which the South Korean Christians can adopt in order to create an identity for themselves An identity that could help them cope with the many challenges they face within their history and society, such as, contesting cultures, ideas, beliefs and new social reforms

Moreover, this time period is also interesting to look at because it reflects a point in time “when religion becomes an integral part of modern politics,”9 as we see a close relation between the religion and the state This is reflected in the close relationship between the royal family and the missionaries, the formation of the Independence Club by educated, male Korean Christians, the First March Movement in 1919 against the oppressive Japanese rule and the strong reaction by Korean Christians against the Japanese on the issue of the Shinto shrines Through these events, we see the rise of Christianity into a legitimate, political force endorsed by the state, which will influence many areas within the public sphere, such as education and governmental bodies This resulted in the creation of many hybrid institutions that are “constituted by the sensibilities-memories and aspirations, fears and hopes”10 of the Korean Christians who had to reconcile with both their past traditions and present realities, thus resulting in a process of indigenization where they seek to

“Koreanize” the religion and adapt it to serve their own perspective of the world in which they reside in

An Overview of the Field

Despite the phenomenal growth of Christianity in South Korea, research on this phenomenon started only in the last decade and is mostly written in the Korean language As a result there are very few historical works that focus solely on

Christianity and the impact it had on the Korean society Most works on the topic,

such as Kyung Bae Min’s A History of Christian churches in Korea and Choi Myung Keun’s Asian Thought and Culture: Changes in Korean Society between 1884-1910 as

a Result of the Introduction of Christianity, adopt a chronological approach when

discussing the issue These works largely trace the development of Christianity from

an outlawed religion prohibited by the state to its prominent position in the present

9 Talal Asad, p.179

10

Talal Asad, p 181

Positive contributions made by Christianity to the political, social and economic development of the country are also highlighted Other works such as Kang Wi Jo’s

Christ and Caesar in Modern Korea and Park Chung-Shin’s Protestantism and Politics

in Korea also try to look at the topic from a chronological approach even though the

focus is on politics and how religion interacts with political developments in South

Korea Timothy S Lee’s Born Again: Evangelicalism in Korea, the latest addition to

the topic also adopted a chronological approach, but focuses more on explaining the reasons for the growth in Christianity in the different time periods What makes his book stands out from the rest is his last chapter that looks closely at the nature of Christianity and how it is practiced by Koreans, thus deviating from the macroscopic overview which most works on Christianity presents

Although these studies provide a comprehensive and organized view of the

development of Christianity in Korea and later South Korea, with the exception of Timothy S Lee’s final chapter, they are largely done from a broad top-down

perspective that traces the adoption of the religion from a national level The focus

in these studies are also very much on how the adoption of the religion provided the Koreans with ways and institutions through which they can cope with the challenges within their society These include the translation of the bible into the vernacular language which indirectly promoted literacy amongst the Koreans and also the provision of education and health-care through the various Christian institutions set

up by the early missionaries This positive view of Christianity is further emphasized

by its links to early resistance movements against the weak Choson dynasty and the Japanese colonials Seen in this light, Christianity is viewed as a positive social force that helps to bring about progress in a very euro-centric sense to the Koreans I feel that, while this macroscopic view of Christianity does account to some extent for the popularity of Christianity in South Korea, it misses out on a very important aspect –

the impact of the religion on the individual, the interaction between the

missionaries and the Koreans and how Christianity appealed to the common day South Korean through this cultural exchange

every-This positive view of Christianity and the contributions made by early missionaries to

the modernization of South Korea is also highlighted in Donald Clarke’s Missionary Photography in Korea: Encountering the West through Christianity and in the

interviews of Bruce Finley Hunt who was a missionary, born in Korea in 1903 Unlike the more macroscopic overview provided in the previous five books mentioned, the strength of these two sources lie in their ability to give the readers a more in depth look on the interaction between the Christian missionaries and the Koreans

Interesting points of contention between the missionaries and the Koreans are highlighted, such as the chesa (ancestor worship) rite issue and the bowing to Shinto shrines as dictated by the Japanese colonizers The ways in which these issues are resolved and the personal accounts of how individual missionaries viewed the Korean believers are useful in giving us a glimpse of how Christianity was practiced, thought of and adopted by Koreans However, given the focus of these sources, being the missionaries, we can gather little about the Korean Christians who seemed rather passive in these accounts and largely follow the lead of the missionaries who were forerunners in the engineering of societal changes in Korea

To look at Christianity only through the lens of how it benefitted the Korean people and society is rather limiting as it fails to acknowledge the contributions and active roles played by the Koreans in the adoption of the religion According to Thomas

David DuBois in his book, Casting Faiths, “the development of sustained Christian

mission not only fomented the creation of mission journals and financial institutions,

it also had far deeper theological effects, played out in changing ideas of social

transformation and individual piety…” Therefore, although many studies have been done on national missions, the processes that constitute the changes and development of the religion within each country can only be seen clearly if we look

at them up close However, this is not possible if we merely look at Christianity from

a broad overview that does not take into account the subtle changes made by the Koreans as they adopt the religion as their own and how these changes will impact the country as a whole

Moreover, these studies also fail to tackle the question of who exactly are “the Korean Christians”? The Korean Christians are often seen as a homogeneous group This is especially untrue of the Protestant Christians, who were in fact from different denominations, different regions and different social classes, thus affecting the way they view, practice and adopt the religion Park Chung-Shin was the only author amongst the rest who took efforts to differentiate between the “Liberal Christians” and the “Conservative Christians.” The former were those who were against the authoritarian style government presented by Syngman Rhee, Park Chung Hee and later Chon Do Hwan, while the former were those who supported these

governments However, this difference was only mentioned in a short, final chapter

in Park’s book, which traced the relationship between Protestant Christians and South Korean Politics from 1948 to the 1980s Besides, the bi-polemical view of the liberal versus the conservative Christians also presents over-simplified categories that fail to take into account the complexities of the economic, social and political circumstances that might influence Korean Christians and their willingness to co-

11

Thomas David DuBois, “Introduction: The Transformation of Religion in East and Southeast

Asia- Paradigmatic”, Chapter 1, Casting Faiths: Imperialism and Transformation of Religion in East and Southeast Asia, Palgrave Macmillan, 31 March 2009, p 8

operate with the government at different time periods Hence given the current literature on the topic I feel that more can be done to examine the way in which ordinary South Koreans view and interact with Christianity

Another area which I found limiting in this body of literature is the lack of

information provided on the Korean Christian community The activities of the Korean Christian Community are often documented by missionaries’ accounts that will describe in great detail the “success stories” of Koreans who have benefitted and transformed with the help of the church, such examples include Yun Chi’Ho and George Paik; two individuals who were given the opportunity to study in America and later returned to Korea However, little is being said about the interactions between the Koreans and the missionaries How did they feel about these

missionaries? Were they viewed as equals by the missionaries? Moreover, these missionaries were later forced out of the country in 1938 when “the Japanese colonial government launched the so-called Assimilation Campaign between

Japanese and Korean Churches to make the Korean Church a Japanese religious institution”12 With the departure of the Western missionaries, Korean Christians were pretty much left on their own to carry out the Nevius Plan to build self-

governing, self-propagating and self-supporting churches in Korea This led to greater autonomy for the Koreans to understand and internalize the religion on their own terms However, this process was not well explored; much less the

development of Christianity in Korea after the Western missionaries came back during and after the Korean War One cannot help but question the nature of the relationship between the Koreans and the missionaries, given the changing political and social circumstance and also the way Christianity was understood in Korea

12

Park, Chung-Shin, p 156

In recent years, historians such as Paul S Cha in his journal article, Unequal Partners, Contested Relations: Protestant Missionaries and Korean Christians, 1884-1907, and also Hyaeweol Choi in her book Gender and Mission Encounters in Korea, tried to

give the Korean Christians a voice by looking at the interaction between the

missionaries and their converts Both the book and journal article provides valuable insight into the tensions between these two groups of people and how these

tensions were resolved, as more power were transferred into the hands of the local Christian community However, as mentioned, the “Korean Christians” were once again seen as a homogeneous group Although, Paul S Cha sought to point out the divisions amongst the Korean Christians, this distinction was not addressed when looking at the interaction between the missionaries and the Koreans Hyaeweol Choi also focuses mainly on the educated women in Korea and their interaction with the missionaries Thus, it would be interesting to understand the differing background of these believers and why Christianity appealed to them in spite being seen as second

to the missionaries when it comes to their faith Why did they accept a foreign religion? And how did this foreign religion grow to become one that most Koreans identify with?

Finally, most studies on the topic of Christianity in Korea are done either by Koreans who are Christians from Christian colleges in Korea, or American missionaries who share close ties with the Christian colleges in Korea This gives the perception that they are writing for a Christian audience, thus accounting for the relatively positive view of Christianity and its links to nationalistic movements in South Korea

Although it can be argued that an insiders’ perspective on a subject may bring greater insights to a subject given their access to information, an insiders’

perspective may also be subjected to biasness and the inability to detect nuances in practices, ideas and connections that they might consider the norm Therefore, it is

useful to gain an outsider’s view on the subject that might bring new ideas and perspectives to light, given the distance from the subject

Looking Beyond the Field of Christianity in Korea

Due to the limitations and problems found in works that focus on the history of Christianity in Korea, there is a need to look beyond the field for more information

on the changes that happened in South Korea from the arrival of the missionaries to the present and how these changes affect the way in which the Koreans came to view their national identity whilst at the same time giving us a clue on the appeal of Christianity Books that trace the Korean national history from its mythic beginnings

to the present, such as Bruce Cummings, Korea’s Place in the Sun and Michael J Seth’s A History of Korea: From Antiquity to the Present are useful starting points

into gaining a closer look at the Korean society, as they reflect the social

transformation of the Korean society from its agricultural beginnings to becoming an industrial nation in a comprehensive and concise manner These books give readers

a clearer picture of the major political, social and economic reforms that took place

in Korea throughout the years and some of the general challenges that the

government and the people of Korea faced while these reforms are carried out Finally, these books also helped to highlight the different groups of people within Korea such as businessmen, students, intellectuals and farmers whose lives were impacted by these changes Therefore in understanding these changes and the people involved in these changes, one can gain a better understanding of the needs

of the Koreans and how the Korean identity came to be imagined

Besides, gender is also another area that provides a better insight into how the Korean identity came to be imagined Books and articles by Haeweol Choi and also

Seungsook Moon’s Militarized Modernity and Gendered Citizenship in South Korea

are all invaluable sources that documents how the state engineered modernity in

Korea through the shaping of specific gender roles for their citizens Given the limited sources written in English these book helps to give readers a useful insight into the role of the state, the repressive measures the state undertook and doctrines which the government tries to instill into the Koreans in order to help them shape new identities as citizens of a country that was born in the midst of political turmoil

Understanding the developments made to gender roles in South Korea and also the interaction between the state and the Korean masses is important because it helps

to show how the Korean identity came to be imagined, amidst the many

contradicting notions within society and their everyday lives Moreover,

understanding the conflicts between the masses and the state on these gender roles will also help us understand why Christianity appealed to both the men and women

of South Korea This is something that I hope to be aware of when writing my thesis and trying to explain the appeal of Christianity to both men and women

However, these books that focus on the national history of Korea are not without problems Like the books on Christianity in Korea, these books also trace the history

of Korea from a broad top-down perspective that gives little room for the voices of the Koreans on the ground to be heard Although groups like the farmers and the students are mentioned in short anecdotes on their resistance towards the

authoritarian government, the over bearing American intervention and the rapid pace at which society was transformed, these anecdotes are not closely explored thus failing to give readers a closer look into the psyche of the ordinary Koreans This simplistic view of the Korean society makes it difficult when we try to apply it to the question of how Christianity becomes so closely tied to the Korean identity as we tend to once again gain a bi-polemic view of the Korean Christians – namely those

on the top of the social ladder and those below, without looking at how they might interact and intersect with one another to form a common Korean identity

This idea of a common Korean identity is one that is worth exploring given the growing literacy rate and rise in the availability of jobs in industrial sectors which gave rise to an urban middle class in South Korea that most people belong to By using historical analysis to look into this phenomenon and the social transformation that took place in Korea, one might gain a better understanding of how Christianity features in the social imagination of the South Koreans in their everyday life

According to Byong-suh Kim in his article, Modernization and Korean Protestant Religiosity, “the impact of such rapid social change through modernization created a

socio-psychological condition of anomie.”13 Most Koreans “lost a clear direction in life and were burdened with strain and stress and loss of communality… thus people

en masse knocked on the doors of the church searching for selfhood and meaning in life.” 14 Although this may be one of the reasons for the rise in Christian converts in South Korea, the reasons that may explain this rise may be more complex than this, therefore it will be useful to examine this issue closely and look at the interaction between the Korean church, the state and the Korean people in order to better understand the role that Christianity plays in defining the Korean national identity

Casting a Wider Net

Beyond the field of Korean history, a study of the role of how religion features in the social imagination of the people in East Asia and post colonial societies in Asia is also useful in transcending the Euro-centric notion of modernity and progress Instead of using the West as the standard marker when judging non Western

13

Byong-suh Kim, “Modernization and Korean Protestant Religiosity”, Christianity in Korea,

edited by Robert E Bushwell Jr & Timothy S Lee, University of Hawai’i Press, Honolulu,

2007, pp 132-133

14

Ibid., pp 322-323

societies, a close study of these non-Western societies on their own terms will help

us better understand how they determine their identities, vis-à-vis their history and common experiences of Western intervention both during the period of colonialism and the later Cold War era, as they move towards becoming modern nation states

Research done by Shuk-Wan Poon on Republican China and Paul R Katz on Taiwan under Chiang Kai Shek are interesting starting points to look at how despite the pursuit of modernity in order to match up with the West, religion continues to play

an important role in the process of identity formation and the building of nationalist sentiments amongst the people According to Paul R Katz and Murray A Rubinstein,

“the creation of identities by means of religious activities is often linked to response

to drastic socioeconomic and political changes that… tend to result in the

preservation, restoration or reinforcement of already extant identities, as opposed

to the formation of new or original identities.”15 The same goes for Shuk-Wan Poon’s research where despite the attempts made by the government to modernize China

by defining between what is superstition and what is not, the people constantly tries

to negotiate between their religious beliefs and modernity that is tied to

nationalistic ideas of progress, by refashioning “the meanings and representations

of national culture in local society.”16 Therefore, showing how the study of religion and the way that it is being practiced by the people on the ground, can help to give a voice to the individuals on the ground whose voices are often drowned out by the official history that often takes on a euro-centric approach towards defining societal transformation, development and progress

In addition to the study of religion in general, a study of conversion experiences by countries in Southeast Asia and East Asia to Christianity will help draw parallels to the situation in South Korea and provide a more holistic picture to the growth of Christianity in South Korea and the reasons behind this growth The case studies on the growth of Christianity amongst Southeast Asian nations such as Singapore and Malaysia are also useful because these countries, like South Korea also experienced great social transformation in the last decade and were countries that were

constructed unexpectedly after world war two The people of these countries thus face a similar problem with the South Koreans in their search for an identity in a rapidly changing world where they are given new roles as citizens of a country and introduced to new terms of classification such as race and ethnicity Works from sociologist John Clammer, Tong Chee Kiong and A.Sue Russell who studied the growth of Christianity in Singapore and Malaysia will thus provide a good reference point and framework through which one can view the South Korean case Through a comparison with these countries, we can take a closer look at the Korean case and see how Christianity is accepted into South Korea on her own unique terms, given her tradition, culture, political and social circumstances

Methodology

As can be seen from the above, most of the research done on the growth of

Christianity in South Korea is done from a very broad, top-down perspective The church, the Korean government, the Korean people and the missionaries were all studied as homogeneous group who instituted changes and made decisions as a group However, looking at this broad picture, one cannot help but ask if this is all to the success story of Christianity and its growth in South Korea This is because, despite being a force that can engineer change within society, religion is first and foremost identified with the individual who chose to actively practice the faith

Therefore in the case of South Korea, one cannot help but ask how individual South Koreans connect with the religion What made Christianity appeal to the individual

in spite of its place as a foreign religion? How do South Koreans understand

Christianity and did this understanding change over time given the different social and political backdrop in South Korea? These are questions that I found unanswered when doing my research on the topic Therefore in the following three chapters of

my thesis, I hope to relook at the history of Christianity in Korea with these

questions in mind, and try to gain a better understanding on the reasons behind the appeal of Christianity and how different groups of people in Korea come to

understand and embrace the religion as part of their identity

In order to gain an insight to these questions, it will be useful to combine

ethnography and history Missionary records on the activities of churches in South Korea and secondary sources on the topic will be useful as a starting point However, records alone are not enough when trying to understand the human psyche as these records might hold certain biases and contradictions that cannot be readily detected given the coherent way in which information are presented Therefore by combining ethnographical methods such as holding oral interviews and observing church rituals, activities and practices, one can gain a more in depth perspective on the appeal of Christianity to South Koreans, while also gaining insight into the

construction process of one’s personal identity and how religion comes to play an important role in the final product

Conclusion

In the next three chapters of my thesis, I hope to gain a better perspective with regards to the appeal of Christianity in South Korea to the ordinary people on the ground, focusing on the early advent of the religion in the 1880s up until 1945 when the missionaries were told to leave Korea In order to understand the impact of the

religion on Korea and how it has evolved over the years to adopt “Korean

characteristics”, I would also look at the Korean churches today, the rituals held there, the believers and the way in which they understood their history As

mentioned, unlike the narratives that were presented by the various authors on the topic, the history of Christianity is not always one of linear progression of growth Similarly, its impact is not always beneficial and positive to the Koreans Therefore,

by looking at how Christianity appealed to the Koreans at different junctures in their history, we can see how this idea of being a Christian changes over time to adapt to the needs of the Koreans Understanding these changes will also help us to better understand the appeal of Christianity to South Koreans and how it comes to feature

in the social imagination of the South Koreans, so much so that it is seen as a

“Korean” religion rather than a foreign one

Chapter one of my thesis will mainly give a brief overview of the religion and how it took root in Korea Using both primary and secondary sources, I hope to look at the contributions made by the missionaries and the impact they made on the Korean people I also hope to gain a better understanding on why the Koreans were

attracted to the religion during this period of time, Although these accounts might contain certain biasness on the part of the missionaries and also come with certain ulterior motives (presenting a favourable view of Korea to inspire Christians within their homeland to contribute more funds to the missionary efforts in Korea), these accounts serve as good primary sources as we look into the needs of the Koreans and how these missionaries drew the locals into the religion whilst at the same time help lay the foundation on how Christianity is going to be defined and practiced within the country

In Chapter two, I will shift my focus to the interaction between the missionaries and the Christians in Korea in order to better understand the transformation of

Christianity from a religion that is foreign to one that the Koreans can identify with

Using missionary accounts, L George Paik’s dissertation on, The history of Protestant Missions in Korea 1832-1910, and other secondary sources, I hope to look more

closely at tensions that emerged between the western missionaries and the Korean Christians; their differing goals and interpretation of the historical and political events that befall Korea, and how they seek to maintain a semblance of harmony in the midst of this struggle for control over the direction which the Church and

religion should take Through these tensions and key events in the history of

Christianity in Korea, one can see a gradual shift in power from the western

missionaries to the Korean converts as they gradually learn how to hold their own against the missionaries, thus gaining greater autonomy over the running of the church and the practice of Christianity within their communities

Finally, chapter three will focus on the way in which Korean Christians reconstruct their own history and use it to construct their identity in the present day This is possible after the Korean converts managed to take over the reins from the western missionaries that were forced to depart from Korea after World War Two Through a short field trip in Seoul, I managed to visit a Methodist Church Through the use of interviews, the attendance of 2 church services and a booklet which documents the Church’s history, I hope to take a closer look on how history is being re-interpreted

by the church Looking at what they choose to remember and what they choose to omit, one can gain a better understanding on the process of indigenization, where Christianity, a foreign religion is embraced by the locals and understood in their terms

Therefore in examining these areas, I hope to study the process by which the

Christian identity is formed in South Korea while not forgetting the “different

roles”17 that the Koreans choose to play in order “to create or reinforce differing identities”18 for themselves in order to make better sense of the world that they live

in Indeed, as mentioned in the biblical verse at the beginning, God calls out to all to seek Him, but the reasons why people choose to seek and knock on the door of the church may differ and it is this process that I hope to understand in order to see how religion fit into the picture of the modern world

Chapter 1: Making Inroads into the Hermit Kingdom: The Transformation of

Christianity in South Korea (1884-1953)

From its humble beginnings in 1784 as an outlawed religion, to its present

prominence “in the socio-political and cultural fabric of Korea,”19 the story of the successful growth of Christianity in Korea has always garnered huge interest and intense discussion amongst the many scholars from the various disciplines Many sought to answer the question as to why the spread of Christianity, a religion

associated with the West, was so successful in Korea, yet not in other parts of East Asia (such as Japan and China), where missionary efforts were equally strong or perhaps even stronger than in Korea The typical explanations given to this question include: the religious similarities between Christianity and the traditional Korean religion, Shamanism which believes “in the universal presence of spirits”20; the political and social circumstances in Korea that made Christianity appeal to the people as a vehicle of modernization, Korean nationalism and later anti-

communism; and finally, the success of the Protestant missionaries in tying their efforts at evangelicalism with social activism These explanations are all equally valid

in explaining the success of Christianity in Korea Therefore, through this short overview, I hope to revisit the secondary sources and narratives on this topic This is because these narratives mostly give a linear and triumphant account of the growth

of Christianity in South Korea However, given the political and social situation in South Korea, often times, faith became more than just a “personal matter,”21 but

David Martin, Tongues of Fire: The Explosion of Protestantism in Latin America, Basil

Blackwell Inc., UK, 1990, p 138

21 Bushwell, Robert E Jr and Lee, Timothy S., eds Christianity in Korea, University of Hawai’i

Press, United States of America, 2006, p 8

one that has “social, political and economic ramifications” Thus, by tracing the growth of Christianity in South Korea during this period, I hope to gain a better understanding on its appeal while at the same time looking at problems faced by South Koreans in accepting this new faith that will help shed new light the

transformation of Christianity into a “Korean” religion over the years

Protestantism and its Early Beginings

Although Catholicism had an earlier head start of about a hundred years in Korea, it was Protestantism that saw a greater amount of success in bringing about converts and thus, changed the political, cultural and social fabric of Korea Therefore, I choose to begin my story with Dr Horace N Allen, the first Protestant missionary to set foot in Korea in 1884 This is not to say that Protestantism was not present in Korea before 1884; in fact, due to Korea’s strategic position as a land bordering China, Japan and Russia, Korea was not left untouched by global forces that often penetrated the country despite her bid to remain a hermit kingdom through a closed door policy Many in Korea had “heard the Gospel message several years earlier-delivered by converts of Scottish missionaries working in China, specifically in

Manchuria.”23 These early converts who lived in the border towns between

Manchuria and Korea not only helped to spread the message of God to their fellow Koreans in Korea, they also helped in the translation of the Bible into hangul and later “smuggled copies of the Bible into Korea.”24 After the forced signing of the Kanghwa treaty in 1876 by Japan, Korea reluctantly partook in the treaty system that saw her being introduced to new ideas and terms such as nationhood, state and sovereignty Heeding China’s favorable view of America as “a benevolent and

22

Bushwell, Robert E Jr and Lee, Timothy S., eds Christianity in Korea, p 8

23 Lee, Timothy S., Born Again Evangelicalism in Korea, University of Hawai’i Press, United

States of America, 2010, p 10

24

Ibid., p 11

supportive ally” , Korea concluded her first international treaty with America in

1882, thus bringing about the “opening of Korea as a new mission field”26 as the Koreans looked towards the Americans for advice and directions on how to retain her sovereignty in this new political climate

It was this new political climate of uncertainty that aided Dr Horace N Allen in gaining a foothold within Korean society “Although Allen was actually the first Protestant missionary to set foot in Korea, his presence in the country was legal because he had concurrent appointment as the physician of the US legation.” 27Thus, Allen had to be cautious and not jeopardize his stay in Korea by directly evangelizing

to the Korean people Allen’s opportunity to gain the approval of the Royal family first presented itself in the winter of 1884 when a group of pro-Japanese radicals who wanted to see Korea modernize herself according to the Japanese model, staged a coup’ d’état to overthrow the conservative faction within the Korean government The coup’d’état took place at a banquet where members of the royal family and many foreign dignitaries were present In the midst of the violence, Prince Min Yong-ik (Queen Min’s nephew) was critically wounded “with arteries severed and seven sword cuts on his head and body”28 but he was nursed back to health by Dr Allen This incident not only opened the conservative royal family’s eyes

to the benefits of western science, but also helped Dr Allen gain their trust, thereby paving the way for the founding of the Kwanghyewon, later known as Chejungwon, Korea’s first government hospital, that treated patients using western medicine

25

Chang Uk Byun, “Korean Responses to Foreign Missionaries in Early Modern Korea”,

Missionary Photography in Korea: Encountering the West Through Christianity, edited by

Donald N Clark, The Korea Society, Seoul Selection, 2009, p 32

26 Chang Uk Byun, “Korean Responses to Foreign Missionaries in Early Modern Korea”,

Missionary Photography in Korea: Encountering the West Through Christianity, p 32

27 Ibid

28 Horace N Allen, Things Korean, A collection of Sketches and Anecdotes, Fleming H Revell

Co., New York, 1908, p 162

Thus we see that Christianity gained its first foot-hold through deeds of altruism Dr Allen’s act of saving Prince Min Yong-ik probably lent much weight to his sharing of Christianity

Following the success of Dr Allen, many missionaries started to enter the mission field via the areas of education and medicine, where “Western ‘civilizing tools’ were used to open the hearts and minds of the Koreans to Christianity.”29 Given the general atmosphere of change and uncertainty during this period, the missionaries found many willing converts amongst the Koreans, who sought spiritual solace and hope in this new religion The idea of “Protestant Christian modernity”30 was one of the reasons that made the religion appeal to Koreans This idea of modernity was attractive to Koreans as it “advocates the idea of an inevitable historical movement toward material and technological modernity and places the moral, cultural, and spiritual role of Christianity at the core of the enterprise.”31 Although this view assumes the superiority of the Christian religion way of living, it offered the Koreans

“a worldview that encourages Korean nationalism and created an alternative

modern style that was not patterned on Imperial Japan,”32 which the Koreans feared and despised Unlike that Japanese brand of “secular modernity”33, Korea’s road to modernity was one that stood on a higher moral ground In a way, Christianity also served as a less radical route to Western Civilization and bore close similarities to the tongdo sogi ron( “preserving eastern ways and accepting western tools”), a doctrine that was adopted by the royal family, who placed their trust in foreign

29

Chang Uk Byun, “Korean Responses to Foreign Missionaries in Early Modern Korea”, p 35

30

Choi Hyaeweol, Gender and Mission Encounters in Korea: New Women, Old Ways,

University of California Press, Berkley and Los Angeles, California, 2006, p 10

31 Ibid

32

Donald N Clark, “Western Missionaries in Korea: Their Origins, Work, Significance, and

Legacy”, Missionary Photography in Korea: Encountering the West Through Christianity,

edited by Donald N Clark, The Korea Society, Seoul Selection, 2009, p 17

33

Choi Hyaeweol, Gender and Mission Encounters in Korea: New Women, Old Ways, p 10

missionaries like Dr Horace N Allen and Dr Lillias S Horton It was this social and political climate that made the Korean people more receptive towards Christianity

Although the royal family of Korea did not convert to Christianity, their warm

reception of the religion is somewhat similar to the case of the Jesuits in late

imperial China The Jesuits received a warm reception in the Ming court and initially

in the Qing court because they adopted a policy of accommodation to the Chinese culture; showing respect towards the Confucian scholars and their beliefs despite their ultimate goal to convert them religiously This approach made the Jesuits appear less threatening to the Chinese who saw interaction with the Jesuits as scholarly exchanges between the East and the West By sharing their knowledge of western science, mathematics and astronomy with the Chinese, the Jesuits managed

to gain a foothold in the Chinese court as respected and revered scholars; this position will later aid them in gaining converts amongst the Chinese Similarly, the first few missionaries in Korea also took on a similar path as the Jesuits; first gaining the trust of the upper strata of Korean society through the use of western science and technology and later using this trust to reach out to the bottom rung of society

One might question the similarities between “Eastern ways” and the Christian way

of living Although this is indeed a valid question, for the most part, missionaries in Korea trod on careful ground, balancing Korea’s quest for modernity with the existing social structures within Korean society This unwillingness for radical change

on the part of the missionaries would later come to clash with the more progressive Koreans who saw Christianity as a vehicle of change within the Korean society However, in its initial years, Christianity saw the “convergence between the

modernizing objectives of the enlightenment thinkers and progressives in the Korean government, and Protestant missionaries whose objectives was basically to

convert Koreans to Christianity.” This served to fuel the growth of Christianity in Korea The political unrest within Korea starting with the Sino-Japanese war in 1894, which saw the downfall of Korea’s long standing ally, China and later the Russo-Japanese war in 1905, where Korea was made a protectorate of Japan, led many Koreans to seek refuge and a sense of direction in the church The number of

Christians in Korea grew from 4356 in 1896 to 106,287 in 1907; “a growth of more than twenty-four times over a period of eleven years.”35

Apart from the church’s position as a safe haven “providing livelihood, protection, and modern education,”36 and apart from the political unrest and violence within society, what was it that drew the Koreans to church? How did they connect with the religion? Donald Baker made a very important point regarding this question In

an interview, he mentioned that Christianity created a new model for all religions by introducing “a more participatory model of religious organization”37 and also a “shift

in orientation”38 in the people’s mindset, given how God’s nature in the Christian definition is omnipresent, thus setting “limits to the power of the government.”39Therefore, Christianity not only gave Koreans spiritual solace, but it also empowered the Koreans to make changes in their lives through their individual strength,

empowered by God and in the process bring about hope for a better future

Indeed, the “Koreans” cannot be seen as a homogenous group of people, but rather, should be seen as different groups of people who connect to the religion differently, wanting different things from the religion Those who converted to Christianity can

Donald N Clark, “The Religious Revolution in Modern Korean History-interview with Don

Bakar”, Missionary Photography in Korea: Encountering the West Through Christianity, edited

by Donald N Clark, The Korea Society, Seoul Selection, 2009, p 49

37 Ibid., p 49

38 Ibid., p 50

39

Ibid., p 51

be divided into three different simplified categories, namely those who were

alienated by the old Confucian system within the Korean society, women and lastly educated Korean elites who saw Christianity as a way to self-strengthening,

modernization and also the continued independence of Korea To the individuals from these categories, Christianity provided an alternative to both the strict

Confucian ethos that failed to capture their imaginations and also the

other-worldliness of Buddhism that does not provide an immediate solution to their problems I feel that these factors further fuelled the growth of Christianity in Korea

Moreover, when dealing with this notion of the “Korean Christians”, one must also take note of regional variations within Korea Not all regions were as receptive of Christianity, thus understanding these regional variations will help us to see the appeal of Christianity to different groups of Koreans Pyongyang for instance is largely known as the “Jerusalem of the East”40 by many missionaries given its huge number of converts; the largest amongst the other parts of the country Besides, its commercial dealings and porous borders next to China which allowed them to have access to the Christian faith, many Pyongyang Christians converted to Christianity as

a way to gain upward social mobility within Korea Given its distance from the capital, many Northerners saw themselves being marginalized in the Confucian scholar system where they were often passed over for the more affluent

Southerners Christianity with its emphasis on Western education and technology as

a means of social advancement, thus provide many of these Northern scholars with

“an inviting and ethical alternative”41 as opposed to the old Confucian system which marginalized them The many academies set up by the missionaries in Pyongyang

40 Donald N Clark, “The Missionary Presence in Northern Korea before WWII: Human

Investment, Social Significance, and Historical Legacy”, The Northern Region of Korea: History, Identity and Culture, edited by Sun Joo Kim, Seattle: Center for Korean Studies,

University of Washington, c2010 (Baltimore, md: Project Muse, 2012), p 246

41

Ibid., p 234

also aided these North Korean scholars in gaining access to this new form of

education that was badly needed in Korea given the changing political climate that requires the nation to modernize at a fast pace in order to fend off Japan, the emerging power in the imperialist game

Furthermore, through a Christian education, many educated elites, both in North and South Korea were also introduced to Western science, technology and ideas such as democracy Many of these elites were given the opportunity to study in America An example is Seo Jae-pil, who studied medicine at George Washington University in America and later came back to form The Independence Club with like

minded individuals in 1886 The club was responsible for printing The Independent, a

newspaper that was responsible for raising controversial issues such as the

misconduct of the present government and the need for modern education in Korea It was such activities that threatened the status quo and also the practical use

of Christianity as a means to gain technical-know-how to meet the challenges of modernization that raised alarm bells amongst many missionaries Many “could not dispel the suspicion that the Korean believers, however numerous, were Christian in name only.”42 It became apparent that part of the popularity of Christianity lay in the social advantage of calling one-self a Christian This probably helped to propel the popularity of Christianity in Korea, as many parents sought to send their children

to missionary schools where they were promised a new-lease of life regardless of their status or social class

As mentioned, other than the educated elites, Christianity also appealed to those who found themselves at the bottom rung of the Confucian social system One of the appeals of Christianity was that the early missionaries welcomed all to the

42

Lee, Timothy S., Born Again: Evangelicalism in Korea, p 13

church; be it men, women, educated elites or illiterate peasants, or even butchers, the most despised occupation in Korea then Given the emphasis on bible education, many Koreans were “offered basic literacy education to their communities, often for the very first time.” In addition, students who exceled academically in the church were also given opportunities to train in academies to be lay leaders or to further their education in tertiary institutions set up by these missionaries Furthermore, with the adoption of the Nevius Plan by Presbyterian missionaries who were by far the most successful denomination in gaining converts in Korea, many of these churches were encouraged to be self-supporting, thus had to train their

congregation to take part actively in church work This move greatly appealed to the marginalized Koreans who regardless of the size and wealth of their church, were given the opportunity to “be somebody, by getting elected to the leadership.”43These new social opportunities were new to these marginalized Koreans who were taught to be happy with their lot in life under the Confucian system; thus giving them room to explore new options and also provide them with greater individual pride towards their position within society Many Koreans thus turned to

Christianity, seeking the new social status conferred by being called Christian

Before being quick to judge these Christian converts as rice bowl Christians, we must not discount the spiritual aspect of Christianity that gave many Koreans new insight

to the idea of religion According to an oral interview with Bruce Finley Hunt, an American missionary who was born and grew up in Korea since 1901, one of the things that he remembered most distinctly amongst the servants in his home when

he was little was that “they were singing often at their work.”44 These servants who

43 Donald N Clark, “The Missionary Presence in Northern Korea before WWII: Human

Investment, Social Significance, and Historical Legacy”, pp 243-244

44

http://www2.wheaton.edu/bgc/archives/GUIDES/104.htm , Billy Graham Center Archives, Interview of Bruce Finley Hunt-Collection 104, Transcript 1

looked after their family’s “cow, pigs and horses” were singing hymns such as

“Nothing But the Blood of Jesus 46 ” and “There is Joy today…songs that were so very

precious to them.”47 This form of participatory worship was unique to the Koreans because prior to Christianity, most religions in Korea often relied on religious

specialist to carry out rites and rituals, for instance Shamanism Christianity and this form of participatory worship introduce a new concept of a personal relationship with God to the Koreans One in which they can reach out to God whenever they need Him This form of worship thus gave a sense of empowerment and control to many Koreans who could reach out to their God for comfort and solace, without the judging eyes of fellow compatriots

Moreover, women in Korea, who often led a life of domestic seclusion, given the

“long-held gender specific spatial practices”48 that governed women’s place in the Korean society also took to the religion given how “all churches welcomed women along with men, creating new social opportunities and outlets for expression and fulfillment.”49 By translating the bible into han-gul (a simple script that was easy to grasp as compared to the Chinese script preferred by Confucian scholars), many women were taught for the first time how to read The schools and women hospital that were set up by the missionaries also provided women with jobs as nurses and doctors, thus giving these women, some from poorer families, a shot at social advancement within a patriarchal society Furthermore, “going to church created new opportunities for women to share their joys and sorrows in an atmosphere of

Hyaewol Choi, “Women and Protestant Christianity in Korea”, edited by Donald N Clark,

Missionary Photography in Korea: Encountering the West through Christianity, The Korea

Society, Seoul Selection, 2009, Republic of Korea, p 24.

49 Donald N Clark, “The Missionary Presence in Northern Korea before WWII: Human Investment, Social Significance, and Historical Legacy”, p 244

solidarity with other women, away from their daily drudgery and pressure from their in-laws.”50 The opportunities within the church to become leaders of their faith also gave many of these women added confidence and a greater sense of self-worth, thus helping them create an identity for themselves beyond the domestic sphere All

of this helped to fuel the popularity of Christianity in Korea

According to Hyaewol Choi who quoted Mary F Scranton, “women missionaries endeavored to “awaken ambitions” in the minds of the [Korean] women…”51

However, what must be noted is that even though it was the western missionaries who started this movement amongst the women of Korea, the relationship between them is not unilateral, thus leading to occasional conflicts between the two groups

at times The Western missionaries for the most part wanted to maintain the status quo and prevent the Korean women from becoming too modern Yet, many women

in Korea who converted to the faith took matters into their own hands and used the faith and the opportunities that it creates to better their lot in life This can be seen for instance in the case of the “bible women” (Korean Christian women who were employed by foreign missionaries to evangelize through the giving out of tracts and giving biblical instructions to other women, they also act as translators between the missionaries and would be converts.) Despite the many criticisms hurled at these women who were thought to be “crazy” by their more conservative compatriots, many of these women persisted in their faith, carrying their beddings on their head while they travel from place to place to spread the word of God Their persistence not only brought about success in the development of Christianity in Korea, where

“Korean women actually launched their own foreign missionary work themselves

50

Hyaewol Choi, “Women and Protestant Christianity in Korea”, edited by Donald N Clark,

Missionary Photography in Korea: Encountering the West through Christianity, p 24

51

Ibid, p 25

within one generation” , sending local women missionaries to countries like India, China and Africa, but also brought about a “major shift in perspective on what ideal womanhood would be in the modern era.”53 Therefore, we can see how Christianity appealed to the women of Korea in enabling them to carve out both and identity and a space for themselves within Korean society where they could be respected as individuals Although a huge part of the attraction came from the opportunities at social advancement that the religion provides, one cannot deny the spiritual draw of the religion that made many Korean women brave persecution and criticisms from their loved ones to pursue a different path

Keeping the Faith I: The Japanese Colonization

The great revival of 1907, “a nationwide campaign of revival meetings, conducted independently or jointly by churches and denomination”54 served to allay the

missionaries’ fear that the Koreans were merely rice-bowl Christians who converted with an ulterior motive In 1905, Korea was made a protectorate of Japan

“Preachers argued from the pulpit that the humiliating loss of national

independence was brought on by Koreans themselves; that Korea had sinned as a nation; and that independence would not be regained until Korea repented its sins… The activity was not seen as outwardly political but inwardly religious.”55 Although the Koreans sought to maintain the independence of Korea, they did not resort to active political means which would have disrupted the status quo Instead, they turned towards religion as a source of comfort and hope that things would be better for them in the indefinite future This was in line with the neutral stance that most missionaries adopted towards Japan as they were hopeful that the new Japanese

administration would help to speed up the modernization process in Korea

Missionaries were also fearful that the church might “turn into a hotbed of the independence movement”56 Thus, many tried to “depoliticize the church”57 by emphasizing the separation between church and state Even though not all Korean Christians accepted the status quo, a great majority took on this line of thought as opposed to taking a more proactive stance with regards to the situation Many Koreans turned to Christianity as well during this time period, as a source of

comfort

Indeed, the 1907 Great Revival was seen as a watershed event in the history of Christianity in Korea What started as a confession of sins to cleansed his soul, by an American missionary and doctor, James Hardie in front of his congregation soon became an act that brought many Koreans emulate in order to bring them hope and comfort in a time of turmoil and national crisis This event also “left its mark in the mode of worship that still defines the Korean church: an emphasis on fervent

prayer…, confessional prayer, prayer for healing and wholeness, and prayer for deliverance (as from political oppression).”58 These characteristics of the Korean church can even be seen today, as can be seen in my later chapters However, what

is interesting here is that most South Koreans saw this event as a milestone in the history of Christianity in Korea that was spearheaded by Koreans and strong Korean pastors such as Kil Sonju, thereby distancing themselves from the western

missionaries who first started the movement This distance although not entirely unfounded, given the strong leadership provided by the early Korean pastors helped

to enhance the pride of most Korean Christians as it helped cast them in a more

active light with regards to the role they played in making Christianity in Korea internationally known and a vehicle to unite the nation during difficult times

However, in spite of the “born-again experiences”59 that many Koreans experienced during the revivals, many were not prepared to see their nation officially annexed by the Japanese in 1910 As the Japanese presence gained prominence within their daily lives, and their treatment of the Koreans became increasingly brutal, the missionaries’ neutral stance came under the criticism of many believers, who felt that they were “traitors as they preached obedience to the powers that be.”60 Many missionaries discouraged Korean Christians from political involvement, stating the

“example of Christ, who loyally submitted Himself and advised His apostles to submit themselves to far worse government than the Japanese.”61 As a result of the church’s apolitical stance on politics, the number of Christians in Korea started to decline “One missionary wrote that the total number of Christians in 1919 was fewer than in 1911.”62 Therefore showing how the development of Christianity in Korea was not always one of progress and growth but fluctuates with the political and social circumstances that played a role in the appeal of the religion to the Korean population

Besides, without the missionaries knowing, many well-known “evangelical leaders like Yi Sunghun and Kil Sonju (the first locally ordained Presbyterian pastor)”63,

59 Donald N Clark, “The Missionary Presence in Northern Korea before WWII: Human

Investment, Social Significance, and Historical Legacy”., p 25

60

Kane, Danielle and Park Jung Mee, “Geopolitical Networks and Religious Conversion in

Early Twentieth- Century East Asia”, American Journal of Sociology, Vol 115, No 2,

September 2009, p 395

61

Kang, Wi Jo, Christ and Caesar in Modern Korea: A History of Christianity and Politics, State

University of New York Press, Albany, 1997, p 44.

62 Kane, Danielle and Park Jung Mee, “Geopolitical Networks and Religious Conversion in Early Twentieth- Century East Asia”, p 396

63

Lee, Timothy S., Born Again: Evangelicalism in Korea, p 37

joined hands with Korean émigrés in the United States and China to seek

independence for Korea Funds were raised for these émigrés to “make their case for Korea in the Paris Peace Conference, which began in 1919”64 and a promise was made to hold a peaceful demonstration in support of this act With the Korean Christian leaders as the initiators, members from other religious groups and

organizations (such as the Chongdogyoists, Buddhists and students) joined forces to hold a combined demonstration on March 1, 1919 Although, the main event took place at the Seoul Pagoda Park, “Koreans elsewhere in the city and in the country at large staged similar demonstrations”65, proclaiming the independence of Korea This large-scale event, planned by the local church leaders, displayed the power of the church as an institution that could organize the Korean community into a powerful social force All of this helped to bolster the flagging popularity of Christianity in Korea during this difficult time In fact, given the weak government then, the

Protestant church as an organization presented the Koreans with a form of

“cohesion more than anything else in Korean society.”66 This was especially true of Christianity in Korea where Christians would gather “every morning for prayer meetings, conduct worship services on Wednesday evenings and thronged to the church on Sundays from early morning until late at night.”67 This is a unique feature

of the Korean church that will continue until the present as seen in the later

chapters of my thesis In addition, the March First Independence movement also reflected how the Korean Christians and the western missionaries do not always see eye to eye in their interpretation of the religion and its development within Korea

Despite the missionaries’ initial disapproval of the church’s involvement in politics; many missionaries were appalled at the brutality suffered by the Korean protestors Korean Christians suffered the greatest persecution in spite of the joint nature of the Independence Movement Out of the “thirty-three signers of the Declaration of Independence… about half (sixteen) were evangelicals; the others were two

Buddhists and fifteen chongdogyoists.”68 Given these numbers, the networks and also the leadership that the church provided, the Japanese naturally came down hard on the Christians; suspecting the missionaries as well, whom they felt aided the Korean Christians in their cause An example of the brutality of the Japanese can be seen in the case of Cheamni (a little village near the city of Suwon), where male villagers suspected of anti-Japanese acts were rounded up into the village church and burned to death Those who tried to escape from the church were ruthlessly shot and bayoneted

Having witnessed the brutality of the Japanese regime, the missionaries came up with the slogan, “‘no neutrality for brutality’- a slogan born of moral indignation”.69Many openly criticized the Japanese and urged them to stop their oppression of the Koreans When this failed, the missionaries sought help from church leaders

overseas “The atrocities perpetrated on Korean Christians by Japanese soldiers and police were well reported in the United States and in Europe despite efforts by the Japanese authorities to conceal facts…”70 These pressures by the various

international bodies and communities prompted Japan to make changes to their rule over Korea, resulting in the appointment of a new governor –general, Saito Makato

to Korea Saito “promised that his administration would be dedicated to promoting popular happiness, guaranteeing freedom of speech and press and many other

68 Lee, Timothy S , Born Again: Evangelicalism in Korea, p 43

69 Ibid., p 41

70

Kang, Wi Jo, Christ and Caesar in Modern Korea, p 54